CSR
Habits of Mind
Take
a daily task known to all students which by its familiarity is simple, but is
actually composed of a few complex procedures. For example: tying a shoe.
Written:
Ask
students if they think this is a simple task (they’ll probably say “yes.”) Then
challenge them to write step-by-step, directions for accomplishing this task.
(Perhaps they are writing a manual for survival on Earth for Martians…)
or
Verbally:
Ask
the students to pretend that you’re an alien (i.e. Martian – they’ll probably
go along with this idea fairly easily.) Have them as a class
explain how to tie this thing to your lower apendage ending.
Debrief:
Discuss
with students what worked best – arriving at the agreement that directions
which were complete, precise, and well communicated worked best. Extend this to
other areas of communication: Writing a story, recoding scientific
obnservations, etc.
Allow
students time to draw a scene inside a room. They get to complete it any way
they wish.
Randomly
choosing students, ask them to one by one come to the front of the room and
direct the rest of the class to replicate their drawing only by verbal
directions. (or pair kids up and do the same.)
Debrief
the same as above.
You
may even want to model precise direction communication and see how many kids
end up with what YOU had in mind. It will provide a check on their ability to
understand precise communication. (This could be as simple as explaining the
location of polygons on a paper folded in a particular way, etc.)
Activity for the Month
To
help infuse each month’s thinking behavior throughout the school, suggest a
poster contest (or somesuch) by which students demonstrate their own
understanding and application of the month’s thinking behavior. These may be
location specific for placement throughout the school or general exhibitions of
understanding of the behavior.